Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-10-16
OLD WINCHESTER.
MORE LIKE ITS ANCIENT SELF THAN
The OTHER SCHOOLS.
The Recent Celebration Of its Five Hun
dredth Annivsrsary-Curious
Relics Of the Past.
David Kerr in New York Times.l

/
this part of England that two-and-
twenty letters instead OF two would
hardly suffice to deal with them. Inc
name OF Winchester, immortalized IN
the New World by the memory OF
battle unique in history, has in the
Old World other associations equally
enduring and not whit less honor
able. Four years ago, on my way
back from Zululand, gave hasty de-
scription of some Of the more note
worthy spots in the ancient cathedral
city OF William de Wykeham as kind
of supplement to my account OF the
neighboring Abbey Of st. Cross. But
at that time the great public school,
which takes its name from the town,
was closed8or the holidays, and not un-
til this week have | had chance OF
seeing it as it deserves.
Arart from the many illustrious men
whom it has produced, Winchester Col
lege has a special interest OF its own,
from its having preserved more of its
original form and character than any
other of the great schools Of England.
Rugby and Harrow-mere infants at
best when compared with fourteenth
century Winchester-are now modern
lied beyond recognition. Even classic
Elton itself would not be likely to offer
many familiar features to the
eve of its founder, Henry VI,
if that most saintly and useless
of English monarchs were to revisit
it now. But Winchester, although it
has Just celebrated its five hundredth
anniversary, has succeeded in preserv-
ing till within very few years of the
present time all the essential features
Of what it was when it first came from
the hands of the good old bishop who
founded it in the days of Richard Ii.
Even now, in spite OF all recent altera-
tions, it retains enough Of its medieval
characteristics to be one of the most
picturesqueand interesting monuments
of the past in the whole South of Eng
| land.
You're just in time to see the place
in working order, for the school breaks
up tomorrow, says my friend Mr.. s.,
one of the masters, who has kindly un-
dertaken to show me everything that is
to be seen. 1.-The Scotch and Irish
boys go down tonight. and all the rest
follow tomorrow morning It's rather
pity, by the bye, that you weren't
here for the anniversary celebration
last Friday and Saturday, for as it was
our five hundredth anniversary OF
course we made as big thing of it as
We could"
81 must try to console myself, an
swer /, with the recollection of hav-
ing been in Iceland in 1874 on the
thousandth anniversary of its colonial
ton. We hadsguests there from all
parts of Europe and America, although
by ill-lucl the one man whom ] spe-
cially wanted to see-poor old Hans
Christian Andersen-was too i'll to
come, and in fact he died only few
months later. But where are You
taking me now?" "To the porter's
lodge, where a good many Of our col
lege antiques are preserved. He's
quite character, this porter OF ours,
and if you had time for regular talk
with him he could tell you good deal
that would be well worth hearing"
The next moment we find ourselves
in front of the low doorway of the pOr-
ter's lodge, which is quite filed up by
the hurley figure Of the worthy porter
himself, ruddy, stalwart John Bull,
whose Jolly face seems to make quite a
sunshine in the shadowy interior He
Grcets us heartily and proceeds to ex-
hibt with evident satisfaction his mu-
scum Of local curiosities. First comes
an ancient scourge, used in main
tanning the discipline of the school, not
unlike long-handled birch. broom, the
supple, wlry, whiplike twigs of which
must have been no joke to encounter
when welded by some muscular peda-
gogue whose heart was in his work.
Next in the list figures quaint,
| old-fashioned desk of dark oak
one of those which the young
students call "toys" i'll their peculiar
dialect-at which the Wykehamites Of
former generations used to prepare
their lessons. Among the countless
names Iudely carved or scrubbed upon
its surface is one for the preservation
Of which every lover of English litera-
ture and natural history will be thank
ful " Frank Buckland, 1874" Then
follow n number 81 antique tiles-with
the pattern of q star or a lily neatly
worked upon each--dug up during the
repairs of the college kitchen. Several
clumsy iron keys of the old school and
a few rather clever carvings done by
the boys themselves complete the co..
lection.
The inspection over, we all three
marched out into the great quadrangle,
where the porter points with n broad
grin TO Il stone trough close 10 the wall,
OverhuHg by a spout, and informs us
that within the memory OF living men
this trough and spout represented the
washing apparatus reserved for the use
Of the school-boys. "Why, there's
plenty Of gentlemen been to visit the
Place lately" says he, "who remember
quite well having washed themselves
at that trough when they were at
school here" alt must have taken a
very long WHILE" suggest /, "for 50
many boys to wash here one after
another" DWELL, ] don't know about
that, SIR ~ rejoins the porter with a
significant chuckle, "for you see each
boy wouldn't waste much time over the
job, anyhow"
From this historical trough We pass
TO the college kitchen, just at which
point Mr.. Porter takes his leave and
returns to his post, leaving me to the
experienced guidance of Mr.. $. In the
vestibule of the kitchen the latter halts
to point out to me very queer old
picture, which was unearthed in the
course of the repairs after lying con
cealed for more than three centuries.
The painting represents human fig
ure in the embroidered blue coat and
red hose of an old-fashioned
Englishserying man, with en-
ASS head, pigs snout,
paddock on his under jaw, a sword by
bis side and shield ct his back, the
sharp hoofs of n stag instead of feet, q
pitchfork, broom, and shovel grasped
in his left hand, while his right is out
stretched and open. This extraordi-
nary hobgoblin is labelled 1.-THE Trusty
Servant, and the explanation of the
allegory-which certainly appears to
need one--is given by an inscription
in Latin verse beneath the portrait, to